Thousands of headteachers across the country will send a letter to their MPs tomorrow urging them to pressurise the government to provide extra funding for schools.
The letter, being sent by 4,000 heads based in 17 different counties, warns about the impact that funding cuts are having on their schools.
Coordinated by the Worth Less? campaign, the letter will say: “Teachers and support staff are being laid off, class sizes are growing, our curriculum offer diminished and welfare services for the most vulnerable children are constantly overstretched.
“We are also very concerned that schools are being placed in the unwanted position of having to ask parents for regular financial contributions in order to prop up our devastated budgets.”
Although the Conservative manifesto promised an extra £4 billion for schools by 2022, to ensure that no school loses out under the proposed national funding formula, it is unclear whether or not they will stand by this pledge.
Education secretary Justine Greening has said since the general election that no school will lose out under the formula, but the Department for Education has declined to state whether the £4 billion will still be provided in full.
The £4bn would still leave schools facing a real-terms cut of 2.8 per cent between 2017-18 and 2021-22, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
Ms Greening has called for a public commitment to an extra £1.2billion for schools. If this came on top of the £4bn it would provide for a cash freeze in per pupil spending between 2017-18 and 2021-2022.
The Department for Education has said it cannot confirm how much funding will be provided to schools until it has finalised the details of the formula, which will be published “in due course”.
The headteachers involved in the Worth Less? campaign have faced criticism recently for showing political bias. But speaking on behalf of the campaigners, Jules White, headteacher at Tanbridge House School, in West Sussex, called the concerns “unfounded”.
The heads were “undaunted” in their mission to seek “the best possible funding settlement”, he said.
He added: “The clock is again ticking, as heads seem to be no closer to knowing what their budgets will be in the future and crucially whether funding will be in any way adequate. Schools are running on empty and need clarity and support now.”
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